


Providence will Rise Before the Sun

by Carazard



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Fluff, Incest, M/M, Sibling Incest, Slurs, Stancest - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-02
Updated: 2015-10-02
Packaged: 2018-04-24 12:02:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,190
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4918795
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Carazard/pseuds/Carazard
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ford had never been comfortable under the gaze of the public eye, though when his brother displays affection in public,  it all becomes too much for the socially confused teen.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Providence will Rise Before the Sun

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Fandom_Fanatic7](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fandom_Fanatic7/gifts).



There was nothing Stanford Pines feared more than uncertainty. He even found ignorance to be more bearable; at least there was some bliss to be found there. Such unfamiliar doubt caused the teen to be much more cautious than usual; avoiding eye contact from the all-seeing public eye, shielding away his freakish hands, staring nowhere but the pavement directly in front of him as he warily followed his brother's footsteps.

Ford wasn't doing anything _wrong_ , per say - he knew that - to everyone else he and his brother were just walking down a road to go and get a milkshake in a normal, respectable diner on a bright and sunny afternoon. Even so, Ford had never been more aware of his and his brother’s ulterior motives, and though it was completely illogical, still felt judged by the strangers who went about their business around him.

So focused on watching their defined shadows in the radiant sunlight, Ford didn't notice Lee slowing down to walk beside him until it was too late. He flicked his eyes up at his brother, warning him with narrowed eyes and furrowed eyebrows to not go _any_ further. Lee seemed to miss the message however, as he smirked at Ford, letting his arm drop down, and the back of his hand brush oh-so-casually against Ford's. By his sharp intake of breath and flinch away, you'd have though Ford had just experienced a mild electric shock. He looked at his brother pleadingly; there was no masking the sheer confusion and terror that displays of affection in public caused him, not to mention the social consequences Lee's actions might hold. How could he be so irresponsible?

“Sorry,” Lee whispered in a hushed tone just for Ford. Then louder, “So, milkshakes then?”

“Well, that was what I was assuming, yes.” Ford gave Lee a small, grateful smile.

Lee returned the smile, though his hurt feelings still shone through. Ford yearned to be comfortable enough to grasp Lee’s hand, just as his instincts were telling him to, and march onward, their fingers proudly entangled. He had to ignore the waves of guilt that denying his brother’s desires caused him; he simply couldn’t bring himself to risk being discovered by the watchful eye of passers-by.

Soon they reached their destination, Lee offered to buy their drinks – like a real gentleman - while Ford sat down in the most sheltered seats he could find, only hoping that the dark shadows cast on their table could aid his attempt to hide from the public gaze. Lee returned promptly, and the two of them sat, making casual conversation and sipping their overly-sugary drinks. To anyone not paying much attention, it was a very normal, respectable situation.

Ford knew better. The tension between him and Lee was only growing in proportion with their long, awkward silences. His breathing had quickened, and his eyes darted everywhere other than Lee’s face. This was nothing like when they were at home together. There, in that bedroom was the only place they could truly be _themselves_ , where they could hold hands comfortably without this crushing desperation to escape being a potential victim of ridicule from a watchful bystander.

Both brothers were troubled, and both knew it was for the same reason. Whereas Ford usual dealt with his problems by pondering them, often too much, Lee liked to take a more practical approach to tackling such problems.

Which is why he nearly caused Ford to go into cardiac arrest as he seized his brother’s hand under the table with mock vigour.

Sparks shot up Ford’s arm as he realised what Lee had done, though didn’t pull away or make any sudden movements as that would draw attention to him; though Lee’s movements were risky, Ford had to give him credit for being relatively subtle. Ford let it happen, trying to calm himself down. The position they were in meant very few people would be able to actually see their connected hands, though that didn’t stop his mind going into full panic mode.

Suddenly everything was amplified. Ford felt aware of everything around him – every person that passed within ten feet of their table, every snippet of audible conversation, every clink of cutlery and clash of plates. His eyes darted around, faster now and unable to rest, everything was just too big, there was too much information to take in; he felt hyperaware of even where stranger’s eyes rested – were they looking at him? Did they know he was holding hands with a man, his own brother? Were they laughing at him, preparing to come over and speak to them? There was no escaping the gaze of the crowds, he felt trapped, claustrophobic, like he was suffocating. He visibly flinched a little as a man on a neighbouring table stood up, _shit, was he- was he coming over to them…!?_

Ford was suddenly snapped out of his paranoid state by Stanley squeezing his fingers reassuringly. He took a deep breath, watching the man simply go and request some napkins from the main counter. Of course there was nothing to worry about. Suddenly, Ford found himself the closest to comfortable he’d been; he had no need to be scared, he was here with Lee, the one person he had total faith in. Lee would protect him.

But his brief sense of safety was shattered when he looked up to see a young woman approaching them. Ford tensed up, Lee tried to squeeze his hand reassuringly again, but this just aggravated Ford’s nerves further. The girl stood in front of them, golden haired and angel-faced, composed and calculated. She looked around their age, though nevertheless Ford had never felt more intimidated in his life. His breathing was short, eyes restless, his mind raced for something to say; something clever that could get them _out_ of this vulnerable position.

He knew, he just knew before she opened her mouth what she was going to say; she was going to shame them, for that hand that he was _still_ letting his brother hold – she _knew_ how wrong it was and she was taking it upon herself to shame them, publicly nonetheless.

She inhaled, as if to speak. Ford panicked, lashed out in his stress only to blurt out words he had no conscious intention of uttering. “You don’t know _anything_ you – you -!” He froze in panic, realising he’d stood up, and was speaking loudly. Eyes everywhere were resting on him. His body temperature spiked, he trembled all over, burning with embarrassment at the realisation of how much attention he’d drawn to himself. Again, the poor boy had nothing to turn to but his socially-inept instincts.

“ _You –_ you…!” He pointed to his brother now, snatching away his hand. “If you hadn’t suggested this, if we’d just stayed inside and you hadn’t pulled those moves on me even though you _knew_ I was terrified – I wouldn’t be – they would _know_ about us…! E-everyone, everyone _knows_ now…!”

“Ford, Ford!” Lee sounded genuinely concerned, almost frightened of his brother, trying to keep a level tone. For once he was the one trying to maintain calmness in the situation. This was rare.

“No, don’t try and win me over again! You’re the reason they know what _we_ are…! _”_

And in a flurry of stressed, confused tears, Ford ran out, leaving quite the scene behind him.

The girl stood, stunned, “I just came over to ask if we went to the same school. Holy shit I didn’t realise I’d be ambushed by some psycho fag.” She shot Lee a look of sheer disgust, and sauntered away back to her friends.

Lee was now the victim of the nosy, judgemental gazes of the crowds in the café. He could feel his breathing quicken and his chest tighten and soon it became too much for him too. One wrong move and he had a feeling that this crowd could very easily turn into an angry mob. He could only hope that most hadn’t cottoned on to the fact they were _brothers_.

So Lee took a leaf out of his brother’s book and fled as quickly as he could. He too might even have shed a little tear on his way out. Stanford had been right about what he’d said, hell Lee wishes he hadn’t said it _then_ , but he was right, like usual. His foot caught on his way out, making him stumble, and he caught muffled cruel laughter before he exited that claustrophobic hell.

Now outside under the burning crimson of the setting sun, Lee could finally breathe. He felt free of the watch of the masses now, though he reacted very differently to Ford when under pressure, he had certainly experienced the pressure Ford had cracked under.

But where had Ford _gone…?_ The most logical assumption would be home, of course, and it would be _wise_ to follow the most logical assumption, what with Ford’s morals and thoughts being so tightly bound by logic.

Though Lee was neither wise nor logical, and decided to follow his instincts like usual, and began to make his way to Glass Shard Beach.

The light was beginning to fade now, ashen shades disguising everything, crowds were thinning out and were nothing more than shadows in the dim light. The beach its self wasn’t the most charming place even in the radiance of the afternoon, but the sepulchral tones of the night worked their magic, masking the shabbiness of the beach, replacing it with an eerie, nearly macabre feeling. Lee was almost surprised when he saw that for once, his brother had chosen instinct over logic too it seemed, as he was slumped on a crooked bench, eyes down, fingers fiddling.

Lee was cautious in his approach, partially due to the dim light, partially for the sake of his brother’s fragile nerves. He took a seat in the neighbouring swing, _his_ swing, and calmly watched the scenery, letting Ford make the first move. It was well past dusk now, and most people were well on their way home. This was usually a quieter area of town, hence why the twins haunted it so much, and sure enough after about five minutes the last few bystanders passed on, and there was silence other than the violent waves crashing against the jagged rocks in the deep waters below.

Once they were finally alone, perfectly in unison one turned to the other, inhaling as if to speak.

“Oh – shit sorry you go first.”

“No, no, you go.”

Lee shook his head, sincere. “No, you go first, really.”

Ford was hesitant, but followed instructions. He bit his lip, eyes darting about again, though even in the darkness Lee could tell this had a more bashful edge to it, rather than the discomfort of before. “I, uh, well you know as well as I do how bad atwording things I am, but, uh, Stanley I just – I…” he shook his head, pulling himself together. “I realise my actions before may have implied that I was in some way, perhaps, ashamed of you. I know we have discussed this in the past, and you have implied you think I feel that way, but I _don’t_ ; I’m not ashamed of you I’m – I’m just _scared_.” His voice wobbled more now, “Just- those people – now they all know – and I –”

“Don’t worry Ford, you don’t have to explain,” Lee cut across gently, “I, well I guess I know how you feel; I felt that way too, I just express it really, really differently to how you do. I – well I rush into problems headstrong, as if to prove I’m tough enough to fight them. I’m – I’m _not_ , and it usually just causes more problems for both of us – I shouldn’t have put you in an uncomfortable position just to prove something to myself, Ford, shit I’m sorry -”

It was Ford’s turn to shake his head, smiling. Hesitantly, Lee looked up to meet his brother’s gaze, unable to hold back an identical, mirrored smile. The ropes of the swings were beginning to rub uncomfortably against their hands, so simultaneously both had the clever idea to sit on the floor, laughing a little when they realised the other had had exactly the same idea.

“One thing I have to say Ford, and well, I’m not entirely sure if you’re going to like this,” Lee laughed awkwardly, eyes flicking away for a moment before he continued. “That girl that came up to us, she wasn’t coming up to confront us. She wanted to know what school we were in. I uh, hate to tell you but, I think… your paranoia might’ve uh, let some information out that wouldn’t have got out previously. Not – not that I’m blaming you at all! I mean, I put you into that situation!”

Ford stared in disbelief for a moment, “You mean… she didn’t _know_? No one knew before I… said anything?”

Lee shook his head.

After a pause, Ford sighed, shaking his head. “Well it’s certainly like me to… overreact in situations like this. Of course no one was paying attention to us, we were just more miscellaneous faces in a mob of people. Of course no one knew! I can’t believe I let my imagination run away with me like that I… I can’t believe I got so _worried_ over that – there wasn’t even a _problem…!”_

“No, no there was a problem; I forced you into a situation you didn’t want to be in, and that’s a problem. And now I’m calm, and can see that, I will make sure I’ll never do that again. Though I think maybe we should… keep our… affections and stuff, out of the, uh, eye of the public?”

Ford nodded sincerely. “I’m glad we feel the same way. When we’re in our room together there’s no problem but… the _risk_ of anyone finding out… I don’t even want to think about what I told them all there today, I’ll have a panic attack.” Ford laughed weakly, though they both knew full well it wasn’t an overstatement.

 There was a comfortable pause. “You know, it’s funny, we both agreed to keep it for when we’re alone and even though we’re so out in the open,” Ford looked around at their dismal surroundings, “I’ve never felt more secure and sheltered.”

“Yeah, figures it’d be this beach, our beach, which feels like a home from home, huh?”

Another slight pause, and Lee reached out to touch Ford’s hand, only to find Ford had matched his actions perfectly and their fingers touched sooner than both expected, surprising them a little. They giggled at one another, intertwining their fingers, with Ford’s extra one tucked around the side of Lee’s hand. Neither could see the other very clearly due to the bleak lighting, though now they didn’t _need_ to, despite not being able to see one another, Lee and Ford had never been more aware of every little breath, every blink or twitch the other made; they had no need for sight when they were so close they could feel everything they needed to.

“I think,” Ford began slowly, his voice quiet, “I think maybe you and I should go out together a little more. Though I think we should be clearer to ensure that we’re outside as brothers, nothing else, and only we’ll know the truth,” he smiled. “It’ll be our secret?”

Lee squeezed Ford’s hand, “Perfect.”

The two’s eyes met in a warm smile, and both leaned in to kiss the other. Ford, still feeling a little fragile from before, happily let Lee take control. It began relatively innocently, though after a few provocative needy breaths from Ford, Lee got the message he could go a little further. 

Lee began to bite at Ford’s bottom lip, Ford’s own moans of need ruining his feigned innocence. Never before had they even _thought_ of being so intimate so out in the open, but similarly, they’d never felt so alone together. With that in mind, Lee pressed on, cupping the base of Ford’s neck gently, coaxing him to lean his head back. Feeling obedient, Ford did just that and was pleasantly rewarded with Lee’s licentious little kisses that trailed down from his jawline to his collar bone.

It didn’t take much for Ford to be reduced to a helpless, yearning mess. He had fallen victim to his brother’s ‘skilled’ technique, and he squirmed gently as little bites lured out blossoming purple bruises. Ford bit his lip, loving how taboo it all felt – how he knew in the morning he’d be panicking about hiding the ugly marks, and how self-conscious he’d feel – and how blissful it felt in the moment.

More biting, more kisses. Once the purple blemishes had bloomed adequately, Lee leaned up again, stealing away Ford’s breaths in another kiss. They clung to one another, hands running through hair, down necks, cupping waists, cupping hips. Who needed breath when they had the ecstasy of each other?

Lee pulled away, wicked grin painted all over his face. Ford couldn’t help but match it with an equally crooked one, though it quickly faded as his mind wondered.

“You don’t think anyone at that diner today… would… _talk_ about what happened? We’re not going to become the gossip of the town are we?” Ford worried, though he still held Lee’s clammy hands in his own.

“Doubt it. They probably didn’t even know who we were. And hey, if we do – who cares?” Lee motioned over to the dark, violent waves of the ocean. “We can just get the fuck out of here if people start acting up.”

Ford looked about ready to complain, but something stopped him. He paused, and then realised that Lee was right. In theory they _could_ just… sail away if things got difficult, it wasn’t like the boat was too far off being finished…  They could just _escape_.

Though, Ford thought, he had begun to think a lot more about university in recent years. He probably couldn’t do that on a boat. He smiled, “If people start talking, we’ll go. Though I do hope people keep quiet about it. I’m sure mom and dad wouldn’t be too… fond of the news.”

Lee visibly shuddered. “If he finds out, we’re sailing to China and never coming back. You’d be okay, he doesn’t hit you.” The fact Lee could joke so casually about this nearly made Ford cringe.

“Come on, it’s getting cold,” Ford stood up, pulling Lee to his feet and kissed him briefly before turning to leave the beach. “Though saying that maybe you should catch a cold. It’d be a good excuse to stay inside for a few days… And a good excuse for me to come and _help_ you.”

“Hey why am I the one who has to get ill?” Lee grinned, punching Ford playfully.

Ford’s wide grin did all the answering for him. The two walked back hand-in-hand, uncaring of the risk of any of the few passers-by seeing them. Though they could still acknowledge that the other was _very_ different in everything other than appearance, at least today had been a step towards truly understanding one another.

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> This is a very, VERY late request from Fandom_Fanatic7, sorry it took so long, not only did my whole room get redecorated the week I started writing this, but then I got ill and college started back and things got a little stressful.  
> I dunno this fic is kind of pointless, but I wanted to push my own boundaries and explore social scenarios that i usually hate reading as a reader? I guess?  
> I dunno but something BillFord-y is probably coming next.  
> Just shoot me a message if you want a request, can't guarantee anything but I'll certainly give it a go.


End file.
